According to CMSMatrix.org, there are more than 1,200 Content Management System (CMS) options available. Using the right CMS for you website can provide serious advantages over traditional websites; saving you both time and money. However, using the wrong CMS can leave you with a website that is too complex and expensive to maintain. Important criteria to consider when choosing a CMS include:
Purpose
Choose a CMS that shares the primary purpose of your website. Is your website’s purpose to market your products or services? Then you may want to choose a CMS that is based on a blog, such as WordPress. If you plan on selling products online then you’ll want a CMS that specializes in eCommerce. Using a great CMS for the wrong purpose can be a costly mistake.
Usability
Consider who will be maintaining your site and their skill set. One significant advantage to using a CMS is that you don’t have to call your web developer each time a content change is necessary. Make sure that the CMS you choose can be operated and maintained by the people you have. Otherwise, you may be calling that developer anyway.
Flexibility
Most CMS’s can be extended via themes, modules, plugins and/or widgets. In addition, they will typically offer an Application Programming Interface (API) for developing custom extensions. Some flexibility criteria you will want to consider include: How complex is it to build custom extensions? Does the CMS provider certify third party extensions? How difficult is it to import and export data?
Performance
CMS’s can significantly improve the performance of website. However, a CMS can also hinder your site’s performance when improperly configured or used for the wrong purpose. Some performance criteria you may want to consider include: What type of caching system is available? Does the CMS support more than one server? What maintenance is required to keep the system healthy? Does the CMS technology match well with your hosting environment?
Security
Considering security requirements during the evaluation process will save both time and money. Too often security is given little consideration until the end of a CMS project when users are being configured for the site. Security features vary greatly between CMS’s. Authorization to secure content is provided by most but not all of them. Content workflow is also a common feature, but the quality of this feature varies significantly between systems.
Support and Community
Finally, you will want a CMS that you can obtain support and documentation for. Consider the following: Does the CMS provider offer free or paid support? Are there community sponsored forums, blogs or information exchanges?
At Synoptek we use several CMS systems and choose the best one based on the needs of the project. For smaller web sites that primarily serve a marketing role we typically use WordPress. It has a low startup cost, thousands of attractive themes and integrates well with many social networking and internet marketing solutions. For larger sites that require additional security and integration with backend systems we use SilverStripe. We also have experience maintaining websites built with DotNetNuke (DNN), Ektron, and Drupal.
Find a Content Management System Solution for your Company by Visiting Synoptek Today!